GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — The government of Guatemala said Saturday that the offices of its honorary consul in Haiti was ransacked, the latest in the Caribbean nation’s recent wave of violenct chaos.
Gangs have raged through Haiti in recent weeks, attacking key institutions and shutting down the main international airport.
Guatemala’s Foreign Ministry did not give any details of damage or thefts during Friday’s attack on the consulate, nor did it say who was responsible.
Children play in the courtyard of a shelter for families displaced by gang violence, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Thursday, March 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)
The ministry said only “paperwork and documentation of the last four or five years had been previously transferred” to the Guatemala Embassy for Haiti, which is located in the neighboring Dominican Republic.
Chaos is nothing new to Haiti, but the recent upheaval has been particularly brutal and prompted Prime Minister Ariel Henry to pledge that he will resign, a key demand of the gangs.
The violence has pushed many Haitians to the brink of famine and left the country’s government in a state of turmoil. It has also prompted the United States to fly in troops to beef up security at the American Embassy and seemingly quash speculation that senior government officials might be leaving.
Children line up to receive a plate of food at a shelter for families displaced by gang violence in Haiti.
While Haiti’s main airport in the capital of Port-au-Prince remains closed following gang attacks, the U.S. State Department said it would be offering limited charter flights for American citizens from the less chaotic northern city of Cap-Haïtien. But it warned that U.S. citizens should consider the flights “only if you think you can reach Cap-Haïtien airport safely.”
A man eats a meal as a child covers his face after receiving free food at a shelter for displaced families.
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